Society

Woman, 62, donates bone marrow

(Shenzhen Daily)
Updated: 2006-03-16 09:19

The bone marrow of a 62-year-old woman was successfully transplanted into her 57-year-old brother in Guangzhou, setting a record in the age of both marrow donor and recipient in China.

According to a report in the Guangzhou Daily which named neither sibling, the man was diagnosed with leukemia in November last year. The doctors of Guangzhou No. 1 People’s Hospital said the biggest chance of saving him was through a bone marrow transplant.

Although siblings are the ideal bone marrow donors, the man initially rejected the transplant offer from his older sister, as he thought she would be at risk at her age. The doctors finally convinced the family to agree to her decision.

Mao Ping, director of the blood department of the hospital, said the bone marrow transplant was not easy. Separating stem cells of an old donor is a difficult process, and the recipient was an old man with several diseases.

The man’s body did not reject the marrow after 50 days of the transplant, however, which meant the transplant was successful.